Former President Joe Biden recently celebrated the conclusion of his cancer treatment by returning to his favorite pastime of riding Amtrak trains. Meanwhile, his former staffers find themselves embroiled in a controversy stirred by claims from Karine Jean-Pierre, the previous White House press secretary. In her newly released book, Jean-Pierre alleges that a high-ranking female aide in the White House attempted to undermine her position. Although she did not name the individual, the New York Post identified the senior adviser as Anita Dunn. Jean-Pierre accused Dunn of treating her, and other women of color, less favorably than their white counterparts.

Jean-Pierre elaborates in her book, “Independent: A Look Inside a Broken White House, Outside the Party Lines,” stating, “I wasn’t the only woman on the White House staff who had negative experiences with this person. She had spoken dismissively to female members of the administration, especially those who were also people of color.” She further claims that even a white colleague felt uneasy witnessing Dunn’s interactions with women of color in email exchanges. These accusations quickly became a hot topic among Biden’s circle, with one former aide remarking to the Daily Mail that these allegations were particularly intriguing due to their “borderline racial undertones.”

Yet, some former aides have stepped forward to defend Dunn’s reputation. A black female aide reported never experiencing any racist behavior from Dunn and even noted Dunn’s active encouragement of minority voices, including her own. “She was the driving force behind Karine’s appointment as press secretary,” the aide explained. Other Biden staffers echoed this sentiment, with a white male aide mentioning that Dunn had initially supported Jean-Pierre’s promotion. Should Dunn’s opinion of Jean-Pierre have changed, some suggest it might have been due to the press secretary’s job performance rather than any racial bias. A white female aide expressed frustration with race being used as an excuse for perceived inadequacies, emphasizing Dunn’s commitment to promoting women throughout her career. “Anita expects results when she gives you an opportunity,” added the black female aide.

Throughout Jean-Pierre’s tenure she was criticized for reading from her briefing book and giving eyebrow-raising responses when Biden had done things like asking ‘Where’s Jackie?’ about a dead congresswoman and alleging that his uncle had been eaten by cannibals. Jean-Pierre maintained in her book that her response related to Biden asking for the late Republican Rep. Jackie Walorski – that she was ‘top of mind’ – was honest. She also argued that it was appropriate for her to accompany the president to Israel and Jordan in the direct aftermath of the October 7, 2023 Hamas terror attack. Jean-Pierre wrote that things came to a head with Dunn – who she didn’t name throughout the book, though Daily Mail’s sources confirmed was the individual – after Dunn suggested that the press secretary sit this one out.

‘”It will be very dangerous,” she said. “You’re a mother. You’re a woman.” Another colleague, she said, a man who had experience in war-torn regions, could go in my place,’ Jean-Pierre wrote. When Jean-Pierre protested over email, Dunn came into her office, screamed at her, and slammed the door on the way out, the ex-press secretary recounted. Dunn had suggested that John Kirby, the National Security Council’s spokesperson, who was the press’ point guy on foreign affairs, go in her place, a source confirmed. Despite sharing the podium with Kirby throughout her tenure, Jean-Pierre didn’t mention him once in her book.

‘That was one thing we all noted, his name is not mentioned throughout the book and that is a choice to make,’ the aide said. ‘It would make sense for John Kirby to go. He had personal relationships with a lot of the hostage families, had met with them one-on-one, he has a wide breadth of experience on this issue within this region, he made the most sense. Period,’ the aide continued. ‘So to read that part was kind of wild for all of us,’ she added. Beyond the racist undertones, Jean-Pierre also alleged that Dunn was behind a smear campaign against her the press, feeding negative stories to the New York Times, Axios and the New York Post.

The New York Post had reported in April 2024 that Dunn had hatched a plan to try and steer Jean-Pierre toward a graceful exit, so that a better communicator could get Biden through a tough campaign year. That effort failed, with Jean-Pierre staying on until Biden left office, as a one-term president, in January. ‘I think she has a version of herself that she sees at that podium, and then the rest of us have a different version that we see,’ the black female aide said. ‘I would say it’s a version of somebody who took a job that is really, really hard and maybe it was a frustration with herself, maybe it was a misunderstanding of how much work the job would take, but just couldn’t meet the moment,’ the aide added. Dunn did not respond to the Daily Mail’s request for comment.

So far, the 82-year old president also hasn’t chimed in. A spokesperson for Biden did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did a top Biden aide. Earlier this week, daughter Ashley Biden posted to Instagram that her father had finished his cancer treatment at Penn Medicine, alongside former First Lady Jill Biden and grandkids Finnegan and Hunter. And on Wednesday, the Daily Mail obtained a photograph of Biden enjoying one of his favorite activities – riding the train. He was spotted at the Wilmington, Delaware, Amtrak station, carrying his own briefcase and surrounded by his Secret Service detail.